Flour-dressing machine



(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 1. A. HUNTER.

FLUUR `DRESSING MACHINE.

Patented June 17, 1884.

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ELQUR DRESSING MACHINE. No. 300,371. PatentedJune l?, 1884.

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liar r AXDREV HUNTER, OF CHICAGO, lL-LlNOlS.

FLOUR-DRESSING MACHlNE.

SPECEFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 300,371, dated .Tune 17, 1884.

To CLM whom, it may concern.-

Be it known that l, ANDREW HUNTER, a citizen ol the United States, residing at Chicago, in the county or Cool; and State of lllinoia, have invented a. new and useful Flour- Drcssing Machine, ot' which the following is a speciiication.

My invention relates to improvements in flour-dressing machines in which the meal is fed into the cylinder through an opening in the top ol' the machine, and is caught by rotating beaters and thrown by centrifugal force against the sill; bolting-oloth which covers a part of the cylinder-frame; and the object of my improvements are, iirst, to feed the meal or chop into the cylinder through the top in a thin sheet, thereby reducing the wear on the silk; secondly, to produce a more perfect mode of attaching the sill; to the segmental ribs of the cylindrical frame;l and, thirdly, to secure an easy discharge of the tailings out of the machine, which, in connection with the graduated iced, reduces the power and friction on the wearing parts ot' the machine. l attain these objects by the mechanism illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which*- Figure l is a longitudinal vertical central section of; atom-dressing machine e1nbodying my invention. Fig. 2`isavertical cross-section in the plane of the line .c .r of Fig. l. Fig. 3 is alike representation in the plane of the line ff of Fig. 1. Fig. et .is a section of a beater, showing the angular end. Fig. 5 is a top view of a section of the reciprocating bar and vertical side cams. Fig. 6 is atop view ot' a section ofthe slide-valve. Fig. 7 is a view oi' the end of one of the beaters, showing the rounded or convex face. .Fig 8 is a longitudinal perspective view showing the spiral beaters, frame f1/, and loose silk e. Fig. 9 shows a section ol' frame y covered withloose silk, and canvas, and cross-strip G. Fig. l0

Vshows a cr'osssection of frame y.

Like letters of reference indicate like parts.

A represents the iframe of the machine, which is adapted to receive the working or operative parts suitably.

B B' are recciving-hoppers, into which the meal is fed.

G C is a screwconveyer placed horizontally Application filed January i884. (No model on top of the machine, and carrying from thc center toward the ends. The shaft F is provided with right and left hand liights. The top of the eonveyer is provided with a close cover, into which holes N N are bored for permitting the air to escape that enters with the meal, also that which escapes from the interior of the cylinder through opening D. rlhe bottom of the conveyer is constructed with a longitudinal aperture for the meal to pass through. At one side oi' the opening is placed a reciprocating bar, 0, with projecting pins Z Z. in one side, extending over the aperture. The other side is provided with a sliding valve or cut-oil for distributing evenly the meal that enters the machine. One end of shaft F is provided with a sprocket-wheel, the other end with a vertical cam, U, which works in the projections on casting Y, which is fastened on the end of bar 0. Y

m is a chamber having a hoppcrshaped bottom, and l is a stationary hollow cylinder located in the chamber m. The cylinder l consists of annular or segmental ribs c and d., attached to crossbars l d, and secured to the wallsof the chamber in. The segmental ribs c are made of wood and the. ribs d. of metal. rlhe spaces between the ribs c and d (1,1 close with sill; bolting-cloth e and canvas, and the lower section, a, with wood.

R is a rotary shaft passing centrally through the cylinder l, and G G" are arms extending radially from said shaft.

G G are horizontal bars or helical beaters, attached -to the arms Gf G. rl"he beaters G G arc set spirally. The ends ol' one or more arc` bent.

L is a passage or cduction leading from the cylinder l through opening H, and located near the bottom ot' the cylinder.

G is atransverse strip placed on thc lifting sideof the cylinder, and fastened at the ends on the inside ot' the annular or segmental ribs c, and resting between the canvas and ribs d.

K K is a conveyor.' placed below the chamber m. 'The conveyor is constructed with right and left hand flights Yfor carrying'thc iiour from the center to the ends ol` the machine. The bottom of the conveyor is provided with slides a; fr, and at the ends with slides w w for the lour to escape. Y

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lift the meal from off the bottom and distribv ute it evenly against the bolting-cloth by scattering it in divergent lines.

The operation of the parts now described are as follows: Two grades of meal or flour are fed, if desired, into theV machine-one grade into hopper B and the other into hopper B. The meal, as it falls onto the conveyer, is carrled toward the ends of the machine. Each grade is treated in thesame manner'as if operated upon in two separate machines. The meal enters the machine through the longitudinal opening in the bottom ofthe conveyer. The action of the vibrating bar O and pins ll causes the meal to enter freely, which otherwise would clog. The slide-valve P, when moved out or in, regulates the distance the meal is carried by the conveyer toward the tail end. It is only necessary to have the meal enter the cylinder about three-fourths of the distance from the center of the machine, leaving onefourth of the silk on the cylinder for -cleaning the tailings, before they are discharged at the tail ends through openings H H. The meal, as it enters the cylinder through longitudinal openings D, falls in a thin sheet, and is caught by the beaters G G and thrown against the silk which covers the cylindrical frames on the downward side, thereby separating a large portion of the flour before the meal reaches the bottom ofthe cylinder. lVhat falls onto the bottom is raised by the revolving beaters and thrown against the silk on the rising side. The meal continues to be operated upon by the beaters until the flour is all removed and the residue carried to the tail end by the spirality of the beaters. One or more of the ends of the beaters are bent at an angle of about fifty degrees, which forces the tailings out through openings H H as fast as they are carried to the tail end by the spirality of the beaters. The openings H H are located near the bottom of the cylinder in a line described by the circuit of the ends of the beaters. The meal, when raised :from off the bottom of the cylinder l', is thrown with the greatest force I 4against the covering of the cylinder up to a to secure the greatest durability of the silk, it is necessary to put it on the frames loose. This is accomplished by tacking the sides of the silk to thev cross-pieces d d and to the cir- In order v cular pieces c c. The center of the silk on thc frames is held in position by placing the circular strap-iron d d against the inner side of the silk, and afterward securing the ends to cross-pieces d d. The iron circles prevent the silk from coming in contact with the beaters, and by that means the silk is put onto the frames perfectly loose and elastic, which does away with the rotary traveling of the meal around the inner surface of the silk. The

meal, as it is thrown against the elastic or v loose silk, rebounds, and is again caught by the beaters and thrown back against the silk. The rebounding of the meal vibrates the silk sufficiently, which prevents it from clogging and doubles the capacity of the machine. lt also makes the silk more durable.

The disadvantages of the ordinary centrifugals are as follows: The meal is fed in at the head .near the center of the cylinder. As it reaches the bottom th-e rapidly-revolving beat ers lift it up and throw it with centrifugal force against the silk. At the head the full quantity of feed must be raised and carried around the cylinder. As the meal approaches the tail end the iiour has been separated; consequently the wear is less on the silk at that point, but must be great at the head,where all the feed enters. The meal, as it is thrown against the silk by the beaters, follows their direction, often causing the meal to travel circuito'usly between the silk and the outer circuit of the beaters, which causes the silk to wear rapidly and reduces the bolting capacity. The meal having been exposed so long to the action of the beaters and the circuitous friction against the silk, the fractured particles of coarse flour are further reduced, causing the fiour product of the reel to be soft and pasty.

In order to produce a round granular flour from a centrifugal reel, it must be separated as `soon as it enters the reel, which can only be accomplished by feeding lengthwise from on top through an aperture which connects with the inside of the cylinder. As the meal drops, the rapidly-revolving beaters throw it with centrifugal force against the boltingcloth. The faces of the beaters, being convex, distribute the meal more evenly over a greater surface of the bolting-cloth and separate a large portion of the flour before it reaches the bottom of the machine. Beaters which have a straight or square face throw off on the lifting side at a given point, and the same on the down side, lthereby causing an immense wear at the points described, which is obviated by the face of the beaters being circular. The cylindrical frames, if covered loosely with bolting-cloth, prevent the circuitous traveling of the meal and double the bolting capacity, while the wear on the silk is much reduced, as Well as the amount of power required.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, ism

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1. rIhe combination, in a Hour-dressing inachine, ofthe sliding valve P, vert-ical cam'U, reciprocating bar O, pins Z, and projections V, fastened to the bar O, for the cam U to Work in, substantially as described.

2. The combination, in a Hour-dressing machine, of the conveyers C C', sliding valve IJ, vertical cam U, reciprocating bar O, pins Z, and projections V, fastened to lthe bar O, for the cam U to Work in, substantially as described.

3. In a Hour-dressing` machine, the combination of hoppers B B', conveyers C C, airdischarge openings N N, center partition, S, beaters G lr, and cylinder I, with dischargeopenings II H at the end, substantially as described.

4.. In a doar-dressing1 machine, the combination of a longitudinal feed device, stationary bolting-cylinder I, having a longitudinal feed-opening,` in the top and discharge-opening H, and rotary beaters G, having bent ends, substantially as described.

5, In a doar-dressing machine, thc combination of rotary shaft R, radial arms G G, and lifting,` convex beaters G- G, substantially as described.

6. In a doar-dressing machine, the combination of rotary shaft It, radial arms G G, and lifting` convex beaters G G, with their rear sides lilat, substantially as described.

7. In a flour-dressing machine, frames y y, clothed with loose nnstretehed halting-cloth e, in combination with rotar;T beaters G G, substantially as described.

8. In a doar-dressing machine, the combination of frames y y, clothed with loose nnstretched cloth e, and ribs d d, with rotary beaters G G, substantially as described.

ADREV HUNTER.

1Wi tn esses F. BAXTER, ERNs'r KUN-IUE. 

